Catching up with Lehigh's No. 1 ghost

Asa
Packer was Lehigh University's founder. His name resonates throughout campus,
from Asa Packer Campus to Packer Memorial Church. He is the man that all Lehigh
students can thank for this beloved school, and he is highly respected by the
Lehigh community.

However,
students today are much more familiar with the ghost of Asa Packer. Through his
Twitter handle @AsaPackersGhost, he constantly tweets witty comments about
sports events, historical facts and daily Lehigh occurrences.

One of
his most popular topics is the Lehigh-Lafayette rivalry, using the hashtag
#Rivalry148 this year to spread his pro-Lehigh tweets. Whether he is warning
seniors that if they wear maroon to the game they will not receive their
diplomas, or tweeting his well-known 12 Days of Lehigh-Laf, he never fails to
entertain his followers. Here are some questions about the Lehigh-Lafayette
game that Asa Packer's ghost answered in his own familiar way:

What is your favorite thing about
Lehigh-Lafayette week?

Being
right out there in the open about how strongly I dislike that insignificant
little wart of a school in Easton. May God have mercy on their souls next
weekend, because our football team sure won't.

Do you do anything special on your
Twitter during Lehigh-Lafayette week?

As
usual, Asa's going to be chief antagonist on behalf of the Lehigh family. This
is the third year I've done the #12daysofLehighlaf. The follower-contributed
ideas are usually better than what I come up with! Expect a few fight songs to
be tweeted in their entirety too (including a few you probably never hear on
campus anymore). It's more fun to sing them together though. Until Twitter gets
a speech module, I'm rather stuck.

Do you have any memories from past
Lehigh-Lafayette weeks or games?

Many.
Interesting pattern: the wins stand out far more than the losses, even though
they were painful at the time. By far my favorite moment was "The
Catch" in 1995 though—so improbable as to have appeared impossible. No
Lafayperson could ever make a catch in the dark, in the back of the end zone
like that. Ever. Pure ecstasy in Goodman that night. You can imagine what
campus was like.

What do you think have been some
of the best spirit events during Lehigh-Lafayette week?

The
bonfires of decades ago. Students would spend all week gathering scrap wood
(sources undisclosed). It was an inspired mission to outdo the one from the
year before. And once that thing was lit the student body would gather 'round
and sing and cheer and get so fired up (pun intended) that there was no
question this rivalry was akin to a blood feud. Times change and unfortunately
so do safety standards. Other than that, I'm always amused to see the band
boldly go where no drum player has ever gone before: the classroom. The
Lehigh-Laf-a-Palooza is a nice recent-day addition, but perhaps a little too
modern for old Asa. "Timeflies" indeed.

How many Lehigh-Laf games have you
been a part of?

All
of them. Since forever.

Which event are you most excited
for?

The game
itself is my favorite, but the day before is something I enjoy almost as much.
So much excitement on campus, so many classes interrupted by the Marching 97. I
think it's great how one event brings out the enthusiasm in everyone: the students,
the staff, some faculty, the squirrels and even the leaf-blowing guys. We all
have our own ways of celebrating. I like that this entire week is a progressive
escalation of anticipation and justification for spending quality time with
each other anywhere but the classroom.

Asa
Packer's ghost concluded with this statement: "May we continue to create new yo-mamma jokes for eternity by
simply gazing upon the Lafayette stands for a brief moment."

It is
clear that Asa Packer's ghost would be the most enthusiastic fan in the stands at
the Lehigh-Lafayette game on Saturday — if only we could see him.